55. Julie Rothschild Levi
Comedy creator, writer, and former medical clown
Patience
Patience is taking pause and taking a breath, gifting ourselves and those around us with a quiet yet powerful kind of compassion.
I’m going to take a wild guess that no one, when they reach 120, says about their life that they wished they’d rushed through it more. We hurry through our days, we expect things to happen in nanoseconds, and because of it we find our nerves frayed, our patience worn thin, and our encounters with others short-circuited. When we opt for patience we opt for a life better lived.
We live in an impatient society. We cannot shape Israel into a patient country overnight, but we certainly can be an example when we practice patience – whether that be in line at a supermarket, on the roads, or trying to hear someone out with differing opinions. To be patient towards each other is an act of ‘chesed’ (lovingkindness). What greater gift can we give?